Grants Review Committee

Professional educator volunteer who is not connected with the Boxford public schools

Criteria for Evaluating BEST Grant Applications

The BEST board weighs a number of factors when considering a grant application for approval. Key factors include the potential impact on Boxford’s elementary school student population, the grant’s total cost, the strength of the school administrations support regarding the initiative, weighing in comparison to other grant applications received in the same grant cycle, and factoring in BEST’s funding resources. Below is a more detailed list of criteria to bear in mind, in conjunction with the above, in crafting a new grant application.

A key consideration in evaluating a grant is the potential impact of that grant on the elementary school student population, both in terms of breadth and depth of that impact. There will be preference given to those grants which have the potential to impact the greatest number of students and/or provide the deepest impact on a subset of the student population. The overall impact of the grant will be weighed against the grant’s total cost.

B.E.S.T.’s level of funding in a particular grant cycle can affect which grants are approved. In a well-funded grant cycle, we may be able to approve most or all grants versus in a cycle where more funds are requested than can be currently supported. In that case, we will need to carefully weigh and prioritize each grant, with higher priority given to those grants with the greatest impact. In cases where a grant with merit is not approved due to funding limits in a given grant cycle, we would encourage the applicant to resubmit the grant request in the next cycle.

When considering an Innovative Teaching Tool grant application, B.E.S.T sees our role in the process as that of enabling the technology purchase. However, ongoing maintenance of any equipment purchased with B.E.S.T. funds should be funded via the school budget or other sources.

There is a two-year maximum for grants that are of an ongoing nature (i.e. subscriptions, programs, etc.). Please note that, although a grant may be approved for up to a two-year time frame, it must be reapplied for each year or grant cycle, as appropriate. The reason for this maximum is that B.E.S.T. believes that, after an initial “pilot” period of two years, the school administration is in the best position to determine if the subscription, program, etc., adds enough value to the school(s) to be funded via the school budget

Please be sure that the “Objectives” and “Evaluations” sections are stated in terms of student learning when completing the grant application.

The goal of the Professional Development grants is to reach a broad audience so as to benefit either the staff at large or a group of staff members (i.e. a grade-specific team or curriculum-specific team). Therefore, a course for one individual teacher will not be considered under Professional Development.

When considering Professional Development grants, courses will have a more likely chance of success if there is a plan in place to share the learning with the staff at large when appropriate.

As per B.E.S.T.’s defined focus on Boxford’s elementary schools, B.E.S.T. will only consider pre-school grants when the grant is part of a broader grant application that spans multiple grades and is also inclusive of pre-school.

Note: B.E.S.T. does not fund continuing education, college level or graduate level course credits for teachers and staff of Boxford elementary schools. B.E.S.T. does fund professional development courses for the teachers and staff of Boxford’s elementary schools that directly benefit the students of Boxford’s elementary schools. Course content must provide attendees with actionable resources, tools, and/or information that can be directly applied in the classroom upon completion of the professional development course.

BEST is an all –volunteer, non-profit (501(c)(3) organization. BEST functions like a charitable foundation. We raise private funds from individuals, families, foundations or local businesses that are re-distributed to our schools via a grant application process.